World Cup Roundup: Spain, Paraguay advance to quarterfinals

Spain's David Villa (right) scores a goal during the World Cup round of 16 match against Portugal on Tuesday at Green Point Stadium in Cape Town, South Africa.

SPAIN 1, PORTUGAL 0

Spain spent most of the night trying to break through Portugal's defense. David Villa finally did it.

Villa scored off his own rebound in the 63rd minute, giving the European champs a victory Tuesday in Cape Town, South Africa, that put them into the World Cup quarterfinals.

In a game in which Spain dominated possession and outshot the Portuguese, Villa took Xavi Hernandez's heel pass in the 63rd minute. But his left-footed shot was saved by Portuguese goalkeeper Eduardo.

Villa then fired the rebound with his right foot off the underside of the crossbar and into the net - his fourth goal of the tournament - sprinted to the near corner and slid on his knees to the flag, letting out a mighty yell.

"It was one of my best goals because it got us through to the next round," Villa said. "Keep scoring so we can keep going."

Spain plays Paraguay in the quarterfinals Saturday.

This was 33rd time the Iberian neighbors have met in soccer, but the first time in the World Cup. Spain has won 16 of the matches to Portugal's five.

PARAGUAY 0, JAPAN 0 (SO, 5-3 in PKs)

Paraguay took the most difficult route to its first World Cup quarterfinals.

After 120 exhausting minutes without scoring, the Paraguayans found their touch in penalty kicks, making all five to beat Japan in Pretoria, South Africa.

Oscar Cardozo clinched the 5-3 shootout win after a 0-0 draw with a low left-footed drive past goalkeeper Eiji Kawashima. The only miss in the shootout was by Japan defender Yuichi Komano on the third try when he hit the crossbar. That made the difference.

"This is tough. Both teams made a great effort. God was on our side," said coach Gerardo Martino, who was in tears after the game. "Now we hope to recover and to continue making history."

The Paraguayans are the fourth South American team into the final eight; only Chile fell short, and it lost to Brazil in the second round.